In Reality, It’s Good to Focus on the Negative

Holly Beck, one of the stars of “Boarding House: North Shore,” a reality series that follows seven surfers who live together as they compete in the season-ending Triple Crown contests in Hawaii, found out that reality -- selective reality, at least -- can be twisted and spun.

Her tiffs with housemate Veronica Kay, a former high school champion who is a model for Roxy surfwear, all will make it to the air in the six hour-long shows that begin at 8 tonight on the WB network.

“We didn’t like each other when we met at 15 and I don’t think we’re ever destined to be friends,” said Beck, 22, of Palos Verdes. “But I really come off like a [mean person] in some of the episodes.

“It’s all real, but they only show the negative stuff.”

Gee, there’s a shocker.

Bad dude: Former world champion Sunny Garcia -- who has a public persona that ranges from charming to churlish -- probably won’t get an image makeover from the series.

“I love the guy,” Beck said, “but if you get on his wrong side, he can seem pretty cocky and abrupt.

“They filmed so much of him with his wife and playing with his kids and I thought that would help.

“But all you see in the shows are his fights, so that image of him being a jerk will only be supported.”

Trivia time: What do you call a surfer who rides with his right foot forward?

History missed: Doug Collins, hired this week to work as a commentator at the 2004 Olympics, recalled the U.S. men’s basketball team’s controversial loss to the Soviet Union in the 1972 Munich Games during a conference call this week.

Collins made two free throws to give the U.S. a lead before the Soviets rallied to win after the clock twice was reset to three seconds.

“The game was shown delayed in the U.S.,” Collins said. “My father heard the U.S. lost by one point, so when I went to the line, he assumed I had missed both shots. He turned off the TV, unable to watch.”

The next day, his father was relieved to learn his son wasn’t the goat, but probably sorry he failed to watch the game end ... three times.

Stinking badges: A replica of a stolen jail photo identification card worn by Patrick Roy during a brief stay behind bars in 2000 ended up offered on EBay recently.

Roy, who retired from the Colorado Avalanche last month, was arrested after an argument with his wife, but the charges later were dismissed.

The brother of an Arapahoe County Sheriff’s deputy and his girlfriend, who tried to sell the copy on the Internet auction site, figure to be wearing their own badges soon.

They face felony charges of fraud and possession of stolen property.

Looking back: Muhammad Ali once said of his chosen occupation, “It’s just a job. Grass grows, birds fly, waves pound the sand. I just beat people up.”

Trivia answer: A goofy foot.

And finally: San Antonio guard Stephen Jackson dared to dream when he was asked whom he would like to see the Spurs sign in the off-season: “If it was my choice, it would be Shaq.”

-- John Weyler